Argos go from zeros to heroes

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Remember early this CFL season when an article on the Toronto Argonauts was basically a doomsday report?

Remember when the most popular topic on this team was how embarrassing it will be for Toronto to host the Grey Cup and the Argos to not even make the playoffs?

With the Argos sitting atop the CFL East, headlines have taken on a new tack.

Those who live their lives in double blue are loving this resurgence, while for those who hopped off the team bandwagon there is just one message: shame, shame, shame.

Being a true fan is about standing by your team through the tough times so you can celebrate the good times. I might sound like a broken record; I preached this a couple of weeks back as fans went crazy on the Leafs after a few home losses.

So often I write about being perplexed by the penchant here for fans and media to focus solely on negatives where their home teams are concerned.

It's a sport unto itself.

Even with eight years of covering the Toronto sports scene under my belt, I find it remarkable how the Maple Leafs and, to a lesser degree, the Blue Jays, Raptors and Argos, get attacked when they struggle.

While the Argos typically receive the dimmest portion of this uncomfortable spotlight, this year is different, with the Grey Cup coming to the Rogers Centre.

There is a major lesson here for fans of all of the aforementioned franchises: Sometimes an early season swoon can be turned around and made into a campaign for the ages.

As he stands at the helm, you know master motivator coach Mike "Pinball" Clemons has his group ready for anything when they host the East Final Nov 18.

While he will not allow his players to get ahead of themselves, it is not lost on Clemons just how big it is for his team to be in the first Grey Cup held in Toronto in 15 years -- not to mention what it would mean to the team, city and indeed, league, if the home team were to put all others in its wake.

-- Jody Vance is a longtime sportscaster and personality with Leafs TV.